Dr Vom steals the show at Orange Letlhafula
Sharon Mathala | Monday May 11, 2015 18:30
This year, to bring a bit of twist to the event full of festivities, which started in the morning and went on until late afternoon, two stages were set up to cater for everyone’s preferred taste.
Upon entry even the ambiance told the whole story as many came dressed the part in their traditional gear, to celebrate the harvest period with Orange Letlhafula.
Under the theme “Letlepu Tsina Ya Letlhafula.” patrons were treated to an abundance of Botswana traditional food from bogobe jwa lerotse to phane (mophane worms), seswaa (pounded meat), koko ya Setswana just to mention a few.
Although the event was sold out a week before, Orange Letlhafula made sure they had more than enough food and drinks for everyone. No food festival would be complete without the traditional “wash down”. For an event that was mostly attended by city dwellers, Showtime observed that most enjoyed the traditional beer (mukuru); evidenced by the queue which at most times was longer than the others.
As the mukuru settled in, patrons were treated to live music from Ndingo Johwa, Punah Gabasiame- Molale, and Mafitlhakgosi. Although Ndingo Johwa is capable of pulling masses, he was not the crowd’s favourite on the day; he performed to a luke warm audience.
After the Sachilombe Kalanga artist it was jazz queen, Punah who belted out some of her greatest hits. It was her hit song O Nyala Leng, which paved the way for Mafitlhakgosi. She announced that she would be dropping part 2 of her album Letlhafula this coming month.
Dr Vom shut down this year’s installment of the Orange Letlhafula fashionably; he got on stage with his signature song Thobane, featuring Diparo and Rangers Marena Choir.
Dikhwaere is one of Botswana most celebrated music genre, which often brings together choirs from different parts of the country to compete for ultimate bragging rights. Dr Vom’s rendition of Dikhwaere gave the perfect Botswana traditional event a splendid finish.
Orange Letlhafula is an annual event set to celebrate Botswana culture and heritage. It is in its 15th year and it has been able to maintain its popularity over the years.